Boston Celtics veteran wing Gordon Hayward will “likely” return to the team's practice on Saturday, head coach Brad Stevens announced on Friday.
Brad Stevens said Gordon Hayward will likely return to practice Sunday.
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) December 6, 2019
Hayward fractured his hand in a November matchup with the San Antonio Spurs. The injury came just two years after his devastating opening-night leg fracture in his Celtics debut in 2017, which took the remainder of the season to rehabilitate.
The 29-year-old one-time All-Star, however, looks better and should be back in practice soon. Recently, Hayward went through an individual practice with some contact, telling Brian Robb of Boston Sports Journal that it “went well.”
“It went well,” Hayward said of the appointment. “I played a little kind of like hybrid contact today with coaches and stuff. It’s definitely sore and I think that’s something I’ve got to work through. I’ve got to work through that to make my hand stronger, and hopefully, over the next couple of days, I can do that and get it kind of more the same strength of my right hand.
“I think it’s going to be a little while, and plus I was right-hand dominant anyway. So it’s definitely going to probably not be the exact same, but get it more strengthened so the percentage is closer to my right.”
Stevens could use Hayward's help, as the 10-year veteran appeared on the right track this year after he spent much of last season finding his groove back on the hardwood. Either way, the Celtics are one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference at the moment, with or without Hayward.
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